FAIR 2024 - DAY 7!

Goodness, today was hot! On the suggestion of my dear friend Sharon, I very recently acquired some cooling towels (online shopping is a marvel if you really think about it) which kept me from getting unnecessarily whiny in the Gazebo (some whining was absolutely necessary; let’s call it “commiserating.”). Nevertheless, the Fairgrounds were eerily unpeopled today. We fanned ourselves in the Gazebo for 5 long hours as we waited for kids, questions, visitors, strolling entertainment…anything to keep our minds off the heat.

At one point, a young guy that is part of the cleaning crew stopped by the Gazebo. He had walked someone over to the First Aid station next to us (First Aid was super busy today – even had one ambulance dispatched to take a presumably overheated Fairgoer to a nearby hospital). The cleaning guy was bemoaning his boredom. “There’s nothing to do! There’s no trash to pick up!”

Yeah, it was THAT quiet at the Fair today.

The Fair has a super fun intern this year! Intern Irie
has been very busy doing great things with the Fair's
social media. We even got to be featured for a hot minute!
Rumor has it that Irie is also a multi-year
Watermelon Eating Champion! A woman of many talents!

Keeping one step ahead of Soren

The most unusual question we got in the Gazebo was the location of a hot tub vendor – asked frantically by one of its employees. Otherwise, we chatted up Ian from the American Red Cross Youth Council and kept an eye out for Soren.

We met Soren early in our shift as he approached the Gazebo with purpose and 5 completed fans. The 11-year-old caught my eye because he was wearing black pants, a white shirt, and a white lab coat. I asked him if he was a doctor or a pharmacist or a scientist.

“I’m with the rabbits,” he stated with confidence, incorrectly assuming that explained his long white coat.

Soren was very well-spoken, explained his eyewear strategy of choosing his white glasses instead of his red ones in order to look more professional for the Rabbit Judges, and seemed unusually familiar with our largely hidden stock of prizes. Since he had 5 completed fans – that he said belonged to friends – we let him select 5 prizes. Ian even invited Soren to take a peek inside the hidden supply box.

Eventually happy with his 5 selected Beanie Babies, Soren trotted away, presumably to the Small Animal Barn to deliver the prizes to his friends and tend to his rabbits.

So it was with some surprise that Soren appeared again about 30 minutes later, asking for more fans to fill out. As I chatted with him and sized him up, I realized Soren needed some boundaries.

“Soren,” I said with a big smile, “I’m cutting you off for the day! We need to leave prizes for other kids. No more fans for you.” He handled the new rules impressively well, mostly shrugged his shoulders, and went back to his bunnies.

Except that Soren later showed up in different clothes (same eyewear – he may figure that out tomorrow), hoping we didn’t recognize him and asking for more fans.

“Hey, Soren! How are you doing??”

His sheepish, disappointed smile suggested he regretted telling me his name oh those many hours and Beanie Babies ago.

I am very disappointed that I forgot to show the afternoon shift Soren’s photo. I almost want to make a little poster of him for all future shifts. Because we all know Soren is working each new batch of Beanie Baby Guards!

We decided Soren will probably 
grow up and take over the world.
And retire early on Beanie Baby sales.

After our Gazebo shift, Rob and I grabbed lunch and hung out in the Big Air Conditioned Building with just about everyone else. We gazed for a loooong time at the photo entries, chatted with friends in the Sewing and Plants departments, and strolled through the commercial booths were I repeatedly declined offers of little packets of magic to supposedly revitalize my youth. Although there is no photographic evidence, I also deemed Root Beer beef jerky just slightly better than Dill Pickle beef jerky. I might have brought some home to Woodhaven if I really thought 20 feet of beef jerky made any sense at all in the non-Fair season. I am proud to say I know it does not.

I almost counted every petal. 
Because AC.

Not really interested in tonight’s Grandstands event (souped-up ATVs running around a dirt track), Rob and I instead took advantage of a non-existent Ferris Wheel line to enjoy our annual rotation. We caught a couple of shows, ate some snacks, chatted with friends, and headed home before dark since we were onsite this morning before 9:30am and needed sleep.

Photo taken right before my hat almost
flew off. That would have been devastating!

DIY Swag!

Thanks again to the wonder of online shopping and fast shipping, I was super excited to debut my freshly made 2024 Clark County Fair T-shirt today! Yes, I have FAIR SWAG! And YES people asked me about it! And no, they aren’t for sale. Booooo!!!

The tee was super comfy, if not a 
tiny bit crinkly.

If you have followed my Fair musings over the years, you know I desperately want to saunter about the Fairgrounds with Clark County Fair swag – t-shirts, hats, pins, backpacks, sweatshirts. You know, all the merch. And truth be told, I DO have quite a bit of that from many years past, when such things were offered for sale.

But for reasons I have yet to fathom, my beloved Fair has not offered branded merchandise for sale in a LONG time. It blows my mind, because I go to quite a few Fairs and even tiny ones have at least a shirt or hat to commemorate the day. I long for new CCF t-shirts that better suit my middle-aged shape and body temperature these days.

So you can imagine how out-of-my-mind ecstatic I was when I spotted this display near the canning department on Day 1! FINALLY! All my whining finally fell on the right exasperated ears! Fair Swag was here! Fair Swag was here!! Fair Swag was here!!!

Also crinkly...but so CUTE!

Alas, after much trotting around and breathlessly asking questions, I dejectedly confirmed that the t-shirts hanging out near the canned pickles were in fact made by a volunteer who thought they would liven up the display. Liven up the display and dash my swag dreams. The t-shirts were not for sale. Anywhere. BOOOOO!!!!

After moping around a bit, I realized I, too, could make my own t-shirts! All I needed was some iron-on transfer paper, a “lightweight, breathable, skin-friendly tee,” and some artwork. Computers and search engines are amazing things!

It took a few days, what with all the instructed pre- and post-laundering and the scavenger hunt at Woodhaven to locate the probably-old and practically-unused iron. But, I was super duper stoked to finally be able to wear my 2024 Fair Swag T-shirt today! And if I have to make my own again next year, so be it. I’ve got lots of transfer paper left and I now know where my iron is!

It was quite a process for this non-4-Her!
And also a reason we had to take a day off.

BRING BACK JERRY!

Back in July, when excitedly pre-Fairing by perusing the Clark County Fair’s website, I was shocked and concerned to discover that our favorite hypnotist – Jerry Harris – was not listed. NOOOO!!!!

Instead, Jerry was replaced by a guy named Joe whom I immediately Googled. I then Googled Jerry, rather panicked that something horrible had happened to him. Jerry has been as much a staple of my beloved Fair as elephant ears, llamas, and the Demolition Derby! It was with HUGE relief that I have since learned Jerry is just fine, other than being disappointed not to be Fairing with us. Right there with you, Jerry. Not really getting satisfying answers anywhere as to the changeroo, I nevertheless tried to keep an open mind and embrace change.

Curious and hopeful, Rob and I caught one of Joe’s shows at the start of our Fair. It was a bit of a rough start, so I decided it was most Fair and sporting to see at least one, maybe a couple more of Joe’s shows before weighing in an opinion. Because truth be told, I am a HUGE Jerry fan and am totally biased. Jerry’s kind and educational approach to hypnosis helped me seriously consider it as a treatment for my chronic back pain. I have a much better quality of life thanks to Jerry’s example. Jerry! Jerry!! Jerry!!! (If you know, you know.)

Having now seen 2.5 of Joe’s shows, I can confidently say – or, rather, plead – to the Fine Fair Folks in Charge: PLEASE BRING BACK JERRY!!!

Don’t get me wrong. Joe seems like a very nice guy. I’m sure I’d have a blast chatting with him at a BBQ. He is respectful of his participants and he clearly knows the fundamentals of hypnosis and showmanship. But, frankly, Joe is green. He doesn’t command the stage or seem in control of his show. Oddly, and somewhat concerningly, a number of participants just got up and left the stage in the middle of Joe’s show each time I watched. Also of concern, a number of the bits that Joe does with his participants are bits that Jerry does. And does much better. I also don’t know that I ever saw members of the audience leave Jerry’s shows once they got rolling. During Joe’s shows? Yeah, clearly other Fairing options beckon. Often.

Joe can absolutely hypnotize people. 

Unfortunately, the scheduling this year didn’t do Joe any favors. His nightly shows are at 6:00pm and 8:00pm. This means if you want to see a 7:00pm event in the Grandstands – and get there early enough to get a good seat – you have to choose cuz you can’t do both. We’ve only been able to see Joe because we weren’t interested in this year’s concerts nor tonight’s ATVs. If Jerry had been onsite, I would have been whining to the Fine Fair Folks to please schedule his second show each night at 8:30pm so I could do ALL the Things. As it is, though, I’ve decided I’m not missing much…other than Jerry. Sigh.

Wistful for the Good Ol' Days with Jerry.
You know, like from last year.

 

FAIR FOOD FEAST COLLAGE – DAY 7!

 

• Finally got to the Fairgrounds in time for breakfast! I trotted over to the Lions Booth for scrambled eggs and bacon. The eggs were fine - firm, not runny, nicely seasoned and buttery. But wow, not a lot of egg there.
  
  
• The three strips of bacon that came with my eggs were disappointingly waaay too crispy for me. I didn't finish them.
  
  
• Mid-morning snack: the milkshake special of the day was billed as "Chocolate Covered Strawberry." It tasted just a little more chocolatey than the "Chocolate Strawberry" milkshake I had yesterday. The difference was added Ghiradelli chocolate syrup -- which was a fantastic addition. I slurped this up pretty quickly.
  
  
• Strawberry Peach Pear Smasher! Nice and tangy and very refreshing! I keep hoping to see the Pineapple again, though.
  
  
• Strawberry Rhubarb pie from the Church Ladies Pie Stand. Homemade, delicious, such a treat! The crust was dusted with sugar crystals. YUM!
  
  
• Chicken Caesar Wrap from the Grab n Go booth next to the Raclette booth (owned by the same people). SO GOOD! All of the ingredients were fresh and flavorful. The lettuce was crunchy. The Caesar dressing was tangy and tasty. The tortilla was fresh. Seriously, I would order this outside the Fair. Only complaint: mildly healthy.
  
  
• Little dish of chopped pickles that came with Rob's Raclette sandwich. He doesn't like pickles so I got to eat his. This is one of the secrets to 33 years of marriage. The pickles were nice and crunchy, dilly, and fun to eat!
  
  
• Evening chocolate chip cookie snack from the same place I got the chicken wrap. I had one earlier in the Fair and had been craving it. Found out today the cookies are homemade?! SO GOOD! Rob said the white chocolate chip cookie was also very good...and he doesn't really like white chocolate. This Grab n Go place rocks!